Wanda Breaks Ground on 95-Story Chicago Tower and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

Leading today’s Asia real estate news is a deal in Chicago, as China’s richest man gets started on that city’s third tallest building, while back in the old world top-five mainland developer Country Garden goes after another megaproject in a second-tier location – this time in Birmingham, England. Read on for all these stories and more.

Wanda Breaks Ground on 95-Story Chicago Tower

Mayor Rahm Emanuel helped break ground Wednesday for Chicago’s newest building, Vista Tower in the Lakeshore East neighborhood.

Vista Tower is set to be the third tallest building in Chicago, standing 95 stories tall and reaching 1,200 feet once complete. The Willis Tower stands as Chicago’s tallest tower, reaching 1,729 feet and Trump International Hotel and Tower following by standing at 1,362 feet. Read more>>

Country Garden Commits to £2B Birmingham Project

A Chinese housing developer has signed an agreement to invest and build in Birmingham which could be worth up to £2 billion to the city economy.

City council leader John Clancy has agreed the deal with Guangdong-based developer Country Garden during his week-long trade mission to China.

The Statement of Investment Commitment will see the company explore large-scale investment opportunities in the Greater Birmingham area. Read more>>

Ex-Husband of Longfor Chief Plans to Sell $232M in Shares

The billionaire ex-husband of Longfor Properties chairwoman Wu Yajun is selling 150 million shares worth US$232 million (HK$1.8 billion) in the company through a share placement, according to a term sheet obtained by the South China Morning Post.

Junson Capital, a family office owned by Cai Kui, offered to sell stock in Longfor, one of China’s biggest private developers, at HK$12 per share, a 7 per cent discount to Wednesday’s closing price of HK$12.9. The sale accounts for 2.6 per cent of the company’s outstanding shares and is scheduled to take place on September 8. Read more>>

Henderson to Sell 163 SQFT Flats for $500K in Hong Kong

Henderson Land is set to launch its One Prestige development in North Point, which will offer some of the smallest but most expensive flats in the area.

One Prestige is expected to begin its first round of sales in the coming week or two, after releasing the price list for 50 flats in its first batch, including a unit only 163 sq ft in size – the tiniest on Hong Kong Island. Read more>>

SHKP Raises Prices as HK Demand Picks Up

Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP), the largest developer in Hong Kong by market capitalisation, has raised prices for some units at its Grand Yoho project by more than HK$1.6 million after home buying fever returned last weekend.

In its revised price list, prices for 24 units at the development in Yuen Long have increased by as much as 19 per cent, according to a government website tracking sales of first-hand residential sales. Read more>>

Country Garden to List Property Management Business in Shanghai

Country Garden Holdings, mainland China’s third largest builder, has been given the green light to spin-off its property management firm, Guangdong Country Garden Property Services (CG Property Services) in Shanghai.

CG Property Services received approval from regulators on Wednesday for the initial public offering and listing on the Shanghai Stock Exchange of its ordinary shares denominated in yuan , Country Garden said in a filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange. Read more>>

Tune in again tomorrow for more news, and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on Twitter for headlines as they happen.